


Broken Souls [rewrite]

by Huntz711



Category: Undertale (Video Game)
Genre: Alternate Universe - Swapfell (Undertale), Alternate Universe - Underfell (Undertale), Alternate Universe - Underswap (Undertale), Angst, Hurt/Comfort, M/M, Pain, Physical Abuse, Slavery
Language: English
Status: In-Progress
Published: 2019-04-08
Updated: 2019-06-25
Packaged: 2020-01-06 15:42:45
Rating: Mature
Warnings: Graphic Depictions Of Violence, Major Character Death
Chapters: 3
Words: 6,905
Publisher: archiveofourown.org
Story URL: https://archiveofourown.org/works/18391400
Author URL: https://archiveofourown.org/users/Huntz711/pseuds/Huntz711
Summary: His life had always been painful, but he'd had someone to share it with. Now that was no longer true, and things kept getting worse.This is a rewrite of my old shitty fic by the same name. I wanted to continue that, but it was so unbelievable bad. So, here we are. It still won't be the best, but I promise I'll do my best to give y'all a wild ride.





	1. Chapter 1

**Author's Note:**

> As I said, this is a rewrite. Feel free to go back to the original and read that if you want to compare! If you have already read it, first of all I'm sorry I put you through that. But I hope this lives up to the expectations of the like 3 people who I know wanted to see this happen!

 

Papyrus limped his way home behind his brother, the chain and collar around his neck jangling with each step. He walked how those like him were expected to: quietly, head down, behind his 'master'. His ankle was hurting. He wasn't sure what happened, as it had been a blur, but Sans had hit him and he'd stumbled back and stepped wrong and now his ankle was sending a jolt of pain up his leg with every step. Really, most of him was in pain, but he had decided to focus on the ankle. It didn't hurt quite as much as the rest of him.

He didn't complain. Monsters like him were expected to be quiet, and so he was. He knew that as hurt as he was, he was lucky. The others that shared this... weakness of his were treated far worse.

"Hurry up, mutt. We should be back by now," he heard his brother growl out.

He hurried to obey. It was best to avoid trouble where he could. He was lucky today. He didn't have any new cracks on him. He wanted to keep it that way.

Soon enough, they had reached the house. Papyrus followed Sans inside, closed the door, and knelt. He shivered as he felt Sans's hands, the hands that had hurt him so many times, brush against his chin and neck. The collar was removed and Papyrus felt relieved. Sans looked into his eyes, and the taller lowered his out of habit. A gloved hand gently tilted his skull back up, and Papyrus looked up at him. Though nonverbal, that had been an order. Sans's hand moved up and cupped the side of his brother's face. Papyrus leaned into it, enjoying the gentle touch and quiet moment while it lasted. His brother's eyes were sad. He didn't like that.

"You were very good today, brother. Even if I did have to remind you a few times. You did very well," his brother's voice was soft and gentle.

This would be a quiet night. A blush spread over Papyrus's face at the positive comment, the pretty yellow of it matching his small but genuine smile.

"Thank you, m-m'lo-"

"No, no... we are equals here, brother... even if I forget sometimes," Sans interrupted him.

Papyrus smiled. This night was going to be wonderful. This would be the type of night he would remember when Sans was angry and violent, and that memory would keep him alive even as his brother screamed at him and degraded him and beat him.

"Thank you, brother..."

Sans smiled. He then walked up to his room to change. Papyrus, used to this, stayed still until his brother came down, now wearing a purple t shirt and a pair of black sweatpants. He looked much more relaxed now that he was out of his armor.

"Stand up and help me make dinner," Sans ordered, though there was no force behind it.

Papyrus smiled. Sans wanted to spend time with him. They were quiet as they cooked, but it was a comfortable silence. Sans, of course, wanted to make burritos. Papyrus hadn't had to ask what they were making. Sans only broke the silence to ask for Papyrus to pass him something. The taller, trained not to ask things of the people around him, got things himself. He payed close attention to his brother, savoring this time of calm and happiness. He knew how stressful his brother's life was. He knew his existence only added to the stress. Still, Sans had kept him, and so Papyrus would do his best to make him happy.

When the food was done, Sans looked at him. "Go have a seat," he ordered softly.

Papyrus walked to the table and sat on the floor. People like him weren't allowed to sit on furniture. It was a stupid law, but he guessed that people didn't want their slaves to get any ideas about their importance. He didn't mind it, really. The carpet was comfortable enough. He was surprised, however, when Sans sat next to him and handed him a plate rather than sitting at the table and lowering it down. He didn't say anything about it, but he knew Sans could tell he appreciated it. It was quite obvious, really. Papyrus's soul was glowing brighter than normal and making a soft humming, almost like the purr of a cat. Yellow light was visible through his shirt in between his ribs. Sans leaned his head onto Papyrus's shoulder as he ate.

Papyrus smiled and started to eat as well. He closed his eyes and savored it. Not just the food, but the calmness of the moment. "Thank you, brother."

A glance over at Sans revealed a genuine smile, not sad this time. It was a small smile, but the purple glow just barely visible from between his ribs gave away his happiness.

Papyrus loved it when Sans's soul glowed. It didn't happen often. They ate in comfortable silence. When they were both done, Papyrus took their plates to the sink and washed them. He began to clean up the kitchen from their cooking. Sans joined him, and when that was done, they stood in silence for a moment.

"Papyrus, you'll sleep in my bed with me tonight," Sans said.

"But m'l- ah, brother... you know I am not allowed t-"

"No one will see," the shorter interrupted.

"..Alright."

They both headed up the stairs, Papyrus behind Sans.

"Get ready for bed, then come in here," Sans ordered softly.

Papyrus nodded and walked down the hall to his own room. He opened the door and walked in. Because of the law about people like him on furniture, he didn't have a bed. It was more of a nest of pillows and blankets. Sans had found every loophole he could when making this room for Papyrus so he'd be comfortable. The tall skeleton walked to his closet, which was wide and along the wall. He opened the folding door and took a pair of soft pants and a T-shirt off the shelf. He didn't have much clothing. He had one pair of black jeans other than the one he was wearing, and four sweaters. He also had his one soft pair of pajamas, which Sans had gotten him. He didn't often wear them. He quickly changed into them and walked back down the hall to his brother's room. He slowly got onto the bed. It had been a while since he'd been on a bed. It was heavenly.

As soon as Papyrus was on the bed, Sans had his arms around him. His forehead was against Papyrus's chest. The larger skeleton slipped his arm over his smaller brother and held him close. Soon, Sans was asleep. Papyrus matched his breathing with Sans's and began to drift off. He smiled. Today had been perfect.

\- - -

He closed his eyes as the beating continued. He knew his brother cared about him. He was focusing on the memories of that one pleasant evening. It had been wonderful. Sadly, though, in the past three weeks no day had even come close. He knew that his brotherr was trying to fight some rebels who were being difficult. He knew that he was stressed and angry. And he knew that his Sans's LV made it hard for him to calm down sometimes. But for this long? He was normally able to snap his brother out of it sooner.

He forced himself not to curl up or block the blows. It would make Sans angrier. He simply took it as silently as he could. Tears were streaming down his face.

His brother was kicking him now. He heard a cracking sound and heard himself yelp loudly. He never reacted loudly, so in his hazy mind he concluded that whatever just broke was bad. Sans didn't react to the exclamation of pain. Or at least Papyrus thought he didn't. He was wrong. Sans was soon on top of him, and pain bloomed on his face. He was punching him now.

"You are not to make a sound when you recieve punishments, Mutt. You will sit quietly and take what you deserve.

Papyrus knew that would leave a nasty bruise. He felt the cracks up that side of his face develop a few more hairline fractures splitting off them. His nose began to bleed. Sans moved off him.

"Out of my sight, whelp," was all he said.

Papyrus was up as quick as he could be, the chain on his collar jangling as he made his way up the stairs, leaning heavily on the wall. Sans hadn't bothered to take the chain leash off. He staggered down the hall and into his room, collapsing on the nest of blankets.

\- - -

The collar had now been on so long that his neck was sore and raw under it. Sans almost seemed to enjoy pulling him around by it. This was the longest his brother had stayed violent towards him, and he was starting to lose hope. He was pretty sure half his bones in one foot were shattered. He didn't know how long it'd been since he'd last eaten. He hadn't done anything wrong to his knowledge, but Sans was just so angry that it didn't matter how good he was. One day, Sans seemed to have had enough.

Sans was tugging hard on Papyrus's collar and stepping on his rib cage. Tears were welling in Papyrus's eyes, but he was silent.

"Why do I even keep you? You do nothing for me. I would be better off without you," Sans snarled, letting go of the chain.

Papyrus's upper half was pushed hard onto the ground by the foot on his chest. The pressure put a few more cracks in his rib cage. He let out a soft whimper, the words on top of the pain making it too hard to stay quiet.

"Shut up. Why is it so hard for you to just be quiet?"

Papyrus did not respond. There was no need, because now Sans was over him and there was a club-like bone coming down on his ribs and skull. He shut his eyes tight. Much more of this and his skull would cave in where he already had cracks. He forced himself to stay quiet, gritting his teeth so hard it hurt.

"So useless. You know what? There really is no reason to keep you around. Come on, slave. Get up. I'm gonna do what I should have done when you were a baby."

Papyrus couldn't stay silent anymore. As he was pulled up by the chain again, he began to beg. He had to snap his brother out of it.

"B-brother! Wait, please, don't! I-i can be useful!" he croaked out, coughing and panting.

"Shut up. We're not brothers."

Papyus froze. He stared up at Sans in shock. Sans had said horrible things to him before, but nothing had compared to this. He knew how much their bond meant to Papyrus. Sans knew what he was doing to him by saying that. Papyrus felt numb. He followed behind his brother stumbling as he was yanked by the chain and pulled out of the house. Sans stormed through town, Papyrus following behind him. He looked hurt and afraid, and on top of it broken.

Papyrus didn't struggle. If they weren't brothers, he was nothing to Sans. He wanted to dust there and then. He wanted the pain to go away. He kept his head down as they walked. He didn't have enough energy to cry or make any noise.

Sans was right, really. They weren't brothers. Sans was his master, and Papyrus was his slave.

They were half way to New Home, where the slave auctions take place, when Sans stopped in his tracks. He turned and looked at Papyrus, seeming to take in the state of his appearance for the first time.

"P-papyrus. Take us home. Use your magic." It was unlike his master to stutter.

Papyrus did so, and in the blink of an eye they were in the living room of the house. He didn't really exist other than to do as his master said, did he? He stayed silent. He soon began to feel dizzy. Teleporting took a lot of magic, and he had already been low on it. He glanced at his master, his vision blurring from lack of magic.

Sans was on his knees. His hands were shaking, and he was staring at Papyrus. He began to move closer. Papyrus didn't see what happened next. He had crumpled to the floor from lack of proper magic.

\- - -

Sans stared at the prone form on the floor, his eyes wide. What had he done? He hadn't meant for this to happen... he'd been so angry, and his LV had taken over, and made him hurt his brother, made him-  
No. No, his LV wasn't to blame. Sans knew that he had only himself to blame. It didn't matter. He had lost his temper in the first place. He had caused this. He kneeled by his baby brother, his light, his reason for living, and began to sob, picking the prone form up and holding it close.

He'd only gotten himself to the position of power he was in to protect his brother. He'd only killed and fought at the young age he had so that he could keep Papyrus with him despite his... flaw. He was only the captain of the guard to keep his brother as happy as he could.

His brother had wanted nothing more than to make him happy in return, and he'd... he'd...

His words from before hit him like a punch to the gut.

_"Shut up. We're not brothers."_

Sans knew how much their bond meant to Papyrus. Sans was all he had. He knew that Papyrus clung onto that knowledge when he lost his temper. His baby brother dealt with the beatings only because he knew Sans cared about him. Sans had relinquished their bond. He had essentially told his brother that they would no longer face the world together. He'd told him he didn't need him. By renouncing their brotherhood, Sans knew he'd finally broken his brother.


	2. Chapter 2

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> Enjoy my shitty and edgy writing :^)

Papyrus lay prone on the bed. He didn't want to move. After what happened, Sans had let him stay home for a few days. This was the third of those days. He wanted to lay there until he dusted, which he hoped would be soon. He knew his master didn't care. He didn't know why he'd been left on the bed. His master could just as easily thrown him into his own room and let him sleep on his nest of pillows and plankets. He'd tried to get off the bed, not to leave, but to sleep on the floor. Sans had moved him back onto it. He didn't understand why. 

His master kept bringing his meals to him, and wouldn't leave until he ate. Papyrus was sure his master knew he didn't need that much food. Why was he being merciful? It was just a waste of his time and resources.

He was lost in his thoughts, staring dully at the ceiling, when Sans walked in. He didn't turn to look. He didn't feel he had the energy to.

"Papyrus, you have to get up today. People are starting to wonder where you are."

Papyrus didn't respond at first. A small part of him was hurt that his master didn't want him up for any other reason than keeping up his image. What kind of guard captain didn't have a servant following him, ready to do his bidding? Certainly not any respectable one. 

When Papyrus snapped again from his thoughts, he realized it'd been silent for too long. "As you wish, Master," he said, his voice soft and monotone. 

He sat up and got off the bed. His body no longer ached as it had before his rest. The absence of pain was nice, at least. He followed the shorter skeleton downstairs, stopping and kneeling at the door so his master could put the collar on him. The familiar feeling of it around his neck made him grimace. He should have enjoyed the time without it more. Once the collar was on and the leash connected to it, Papyrus stood. He kept his head down, doing his best to look defeated and subservient, the way slaves like him were meant to act in public. It wasn't hard. 

Sans didn't say much to him, only led him out of town towards waterfall. Noting their direction and the fact that Sans hadn't taken the ferry, which was free to those of his high rank, Papyrus guessed that they would be headed to the house of Sans's second-in-command, Alphys. Her voice always gave him a headache. He didn't have a say in things like this, though. 

Soon enough, they reached the house, which somehow looked like a lizard. Sans knocked and was soon let in, Papyrus trailing close behind on the leash. Papyrus looked around. The place hadn't changed since the last time they were there. Several large swords were now hung on the wall, though. Probably Human artifacts that had fallen from the surface. He continued to look around until he noticed Alphys giving him a rather confused look. At this, he trained his eyes on the ground. 

"You really must enforce more manners on your slave. He acts like a free monster," She remarked to Sans as if Papyrus wasn't there. 

Sans seemed to growl a bit and shot her a glare. "What he does and what I do with him is none of your concern, Alphys." His voice was sharp and loud, showing Alphys that he did not care or plan to act on her words.

Alphys rolled her eyes, her scarred face pinching up in disgust as she shot Sans a glare, then looked to Papyrus, who had again let his eyes wander from the floor. He soon corrected his mistake. The lizard monster offered Sans a chair and he sat. She sat across from him. Papyrus remained standing until he heard Sans's voice sharply order him to sit. He did so, keeping close to his master's chair. 

He let his mind wander as Sans and Alphys discussed whatever they had met to discuss. He didn't care. 

He felt a jolt of surprise run down his spine when Sans's gloved hand gently touched his skull and began to stroke it absentmindedly. He tensed up. He didn't pull away, just sat stock-still. A few weeks ago, the touch would have been welcome and he would have leaned into it. Now, however, the touch was unwanted, and he just wished he could be alone again. 

Papyrus was relieved when Sans and Alphys seemed to be done, around an hour later. Sans had petted his skull for most of the hour, and he was glad that the touch was now gone. His master then led him to the ferry, which they both boarded. They must be headed to the castle. He hated the castle. He hated the guards there, he hated the silence, and most of all he hated the queen. He knew Sans did, too.

He didn't remark on his disappointment at their destination, however. He was meant to be silent.

They reached the Hotland port soon and Sans led Papyrus up the stairs to the elevator, which was thankfully working. Papyrus hated the long walks in Hotland when it wasn't. Papyrus let his thoughts wander, and soon they were at the castle, then in the throne room. Sans kneeled, and Papyrus did so as well. When Sans stood up, however, Papyrus stayed down. Those of his status were not to look upon the queen. 

"Welcome, Sans. I hope your journey here was not too difficult?"

"Good morning, my Queen. It wasn't. Thank you for expressing concern over me." 

"Of course, Captain. Did you see Alphys this morning? How is she?" The queen's voice grew fonder when speaking of the lizard monster. 

Toriel had always favored Alphys. She'd raised and trained her herself. Papyrus knew she wanted Alphys to surpass Sans one day.

"I did. She is doing well." Sans replied.

Papyrus didn't listen to the rest of what happened, simply looking around the throne room as much as he could with his head down. He continued to ignore their voices until Sans nudged him with his foot. 

Toriel was much closer to him now. He hadn't noticed. He'd closed his eyes. 

"Hm... look up at me." He heard her say.

Papyrus hesitantly did so. He forced himself not to flinch as he stared into the queen's intense eyes. She looked just as cold and cruel as last time he'd seen her. He felt himself being checked, and almost flinched a bit. He hated it when people looked at his stats.

"This one really is hopeless, Sans. I don't think he'll serve you well much longer. You may as well get rid of him. It would be easy to get a slave far more willing to serve and please you." Her voice sounded too sweet for what she was saying. 

Sans hesitated before answering. "I appreciate your concern over him, Your Majesty, but I am content with him."

Toriel frowned. She looked at Sans. "You are far too committed to him. It is your choice, though."

Papyrus looked back down. Soon enough, they were headed back to Snowdin. He kept his head down. To his surprise, his brother turned off the path through town and walked him into Muffet's. Sans knew that Papyrus loved Muffet's, and when he felt bad about his actions or was in a really good mood, he'd take him there.

Papyrus followed his master in and sat on the floor by the seat he took. Muffet soon came to serve them. Papyrus looked up at her, and she smiled at him. He managed an unsure smile back and stayed silent as Sans ordered. 

"What would you like, Papyrus?" He asked when he was done, taking Papyrus by surprise. 

"U-uh... just a bagel with honey.. thank you.." Papyrus said softly, looking up at Muffet.

She smiled at him and wrote that down. She'd always been kind to him and those like him. He didn't quite know why, as other than that all he knew about her was that she was known for her greed.

"Alright. That'll all be brought to you soon," she said before walking away. 

"Thank you for letting me order, Master..." Papyrus said softly, before he forgot. 

Sans seemed to flinch at being called Master, but Papyrus didn't see it. "Of course, Papyrus." 

Their food soon came, and the familiar taste of food form Muffet's was welcome to the skeleton on the floor. He savored every bite of it. 

After Muffet's, Sans went on a long patrol during which Papyrus trailes behind him, soon becoming exhausted. When they reached the house, Sans took the collar off and Papyrus, too tired for anything else, retreated to his room to pass out on his pile of bedding. 

\- - -

It wasn't long before things went downhill again. There were several more visits to the queen, who kept hinting that Sans wasn't doing enough to keep violence to a minimum. Sans would nod through it and agree with her, promising to do better. Then, when they were a ways away from the castle, he would start to talk at no one, or maybe to Papyrus. He wasn't sure. Sans would get angrier and rant on and on about what a bitch the queen was. Inevitably, Papyrus would in one way or another get himself involved. He'd either say the wrong things in an attempt to mollify his master, trip on his feet, walk too slow, or any number of small mistakes.

It would tip Sans over the edge and their walk would pause so the shorter skeleton could take his anger out on the taller. Sometimes, monsters would try to sneak up on them in town, only to find themselves being slowly dusted as Sans stood above them, cackling. Papyrus didn't react much to these times. 

Sans would snap out of it for some short evenings and give Papyrus basic first aid, but other than that he was on his own when trying to heal his scrapes, bruises, and fractures. 

\- - -

Luckily for Papyrus, that was the extent of his abuse for several weeks. Unluckily, however, the day things worsened eventually came. It didn't seem like a different day. It actually started pretty well. His master actually let him have breakfast, and seemed to be in a good mood. Papyrus was ready to relax into another monotonous day. He followed Sans to Alphys's house, and they both entered. Sans and Alphys sat talking at the table for several minutes. Sans's hand had been rubbing Papyrus's skull like usual. However, the normal feeling didn't last. Sans must've looked away from Alphys, perhaps down at Papyrus, when Alphys moved. 

In a split second, Sans's chair was broken on the floor and Sans himself was splayed out under Alphys, who had an axe against his neck. Papyrus started. He said nothing and began to tremble. He was such a coward. 

"What is the meaning of this, Alphys!?" Sans demanded. He seemed so unfazed.

"Oh, I just want you out of my way." Alphys had growled out, the axe pressing harder against his neck.

Papyrus's eyes widened. He had to act. He glanced at the swords on the wall. He stood and stumbled towards them as silently as he could, holding his chain so it wouldn't clank and get the lizard's attention. She raised the axe. He didn't have much time. He took the sword, and, no longer worrying about the noise his chain made, brought it down hard on Alphys's head. He hadn't planned much through, but now the sword was lodged into her skull and blood was squirting absolutely everywhere. Alphys's hands began to drop from where they had been holding the axe up, and the weapon began to fall toward Sans's head. 

Papyrus pushed himself off his knees- he'd fallen from the momentum of the sword- and pushed her body to the side, so she wouldn't hit his master. He landed on top of her. The axe slid across the floor and soon disappeared as she dropped it, and Papyrus lay where he'd landed on top of her, exhausted. Alphys was gurgling under him, choking up blood. Papyrus gasped as she grabbed his arm and an electric, white hot pain raced up his arm and through his body. He screamed and jolted, trying to pull away. The pain continued until Alphys fell away into dust below him. He coughed and curled up in the puddle of blood and dust on the floor, coughing and trying to stop his trembling. Sans was standing now, looking down at the blood and dust. He looked disgusted. Papyrus sat up slowly and lowered his head. 

"WHAT HAVE YOU DONE."

Sans's boot soon hit Papyrus's side hard. He fell onto his side and felt his body slide a bit on the now slick tile. He could feel Alphys's blood on the floor, seeping through his jacket. He closed his eyes.

"I had that under control. Did I tell you to move? DID I!?"

"N-no, mas-"

"THEN WHY DID YOU MOVE!? YOU KNOW YOU ARE NOT TO DO THINGS OF YOUR OWN ACCORD." 

"I-I'm sorr-"

"OF COURSE YOU'RE SORRY."

A kick to his ribs followed, and that action was repeated. It drew a soft yelp out of Papyrus, as hard as he was trying to stay silent.

"SHUT UP AND TAKE YOUR PUNISHMENT, SLAVE. YOU ARE NOTHING. YOU DO NOTHING UNLESS I ORDER IT. YOU LIVE ONLY TO SERVE ME, GOT IT!? NEVER FORGET THAT."

"Y-yes, master..." Papyrus hated himself for his stutter. The next kick definitely cracked one of his ribs. He felt his soul grabbed and froze, even his trembling halting. He was thrown against the floor, the wall, the table, the ceiling... Any surface that he could be thrown against he was.

He was dropped soon and lay there limply. His chain was pulled and he was forced into a kneeling position. Sans's hand took his chin. 

Papyrus tried to look away from his master's intense glare. This earned him a hard slap to the face, leaving a red mark. Trembling, he looked into Sans's eyes. 

"The Queen will not be happy with this."

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> Hope you enjoyed. Please comment! I am pathetic and need validation!!


	3. Chapter 3

**Summary for the Chapter:**

> Toriel was not at all happy with it.

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> Hi! I'm not dead, and I will see this through. If you're coming to this after a while, in the last chapter Papyrus killed Alphys to protect Sans, and now Sans is angry.

Before he could really process it, he was being pulled towards and onto the ferry by his chain, and the ferry was moving towards Hotland. Papyrus's eyes widened as he realized that Sans was taking him to Toriel. As they stepped off the boat, his master kicked his feet out from under him. He collapsed and quickly forced himself up onto his hands and knees. Sans started to walk again, and Papyrus started to push himself to his feet in order to follow, but Sans pulled on his chain, yanking him back to his knees.

"You will crawl. You are not good enough to walk like a free monster," he growled at him, continuing to walk. 

Papyrus bit back a whimper, and, shame filling him, crawled as fast as he could after his master. It was humiliating, even though he knew it was a common practice for slaves like him. He knew no one would stare at him or take notice, but he still didn't want anyone to see. He wanted to turn invisible, or be anywhere else. After what felt like an eternity of moving after Sans on his hands and knees, they were in the throne room. Papyrus's knees hurt from crawling, but he stayed silent. 

"Mutt. Tell the Queen what you've done."

Papyrus flinched. He hadn't expected to have to tell her himself. Apparently, his hesitation lasted too long, because he felt a blow come into contact with the top of his skull.

"NOW."

Papyrus made no noise at the hit. He lowered his head more than it already had been and closed his eyes tightly. His voice trembled and cracked as he spoke.

"I-i k.... I k-killed Alphys..."

There were a few moments of deafening silence. Then the temperature in the room rose a few degrees, and he heard the Queen stand up. He heard footsteps, and then suddenly he felt something hard hit his ribs, knocking him over and leaving him splayed out on the floor.

She stepped hard on his rib cage and glared down at him. "I knew your master should have gotten rid of you. Tell me what happened. In detail." She was shaking with rage. 

Papyrus avoided her fiery eyes. "M-my master and I-i were at A-alphys' house to t-talk to her... sh-she attacked h-him...  
I-i took a sword from the wall a-and killed her with it...   
I-i just wanted to p-protect-"

"It was my fight. I did not tell him to intervene. He did this of his own accord." Sans was watching, arms crossed. Papyrus glanced at him and knew he wasn't going to get any help.

"You will be punished for this, Slave. Sans. When we are done here you will chain him up. You will torture him. Make him wish he was dead, and do not feed him. Do not give him a moment of peace between now and when he dusts from starvation."

Sans nodded, shooting a hateful glare at Papyrus. "Of course, my queen."

Papyrus closed his eyes so as to not meet his master's gaze, but they fluttered open when he was grabbed by the neck and pulled roughly up. He looked down to see Toriel holding him up, squeezing his neck tightly. He choked, his magic flow to his skull cut off. He struggled half-heartedly, but knew he wouldn't be getting out of his. A blazing, fiery pain began in his neck, scorching him. It began to sear through the rest of his body. He screamed, but it was more of a pained gargle with the hand still clamped around his cervical vertebrae.

He felt like he was burning from the inside out, and as if fire was licking at his bones. He felt the wetness of tears in his eyes, but they didn't stay long due to the heat. He didn't think it could be any worse, but he was wrong. His whole body was alight with pain, but that burning was completely dwarfed by the feeling that was now encompassing his very soul. He screamed - this time a real, blood-curdling scream - and began to writhe in her grip, seeing with shaky, blurry vision that his soul was clenched tightly in Toriel's free hand. The horrible pain continued for what felt like an eternity, until he was dropped unceremoniously onto the hard floor. He curled up tight, his bones literally smoking.

Toriel stood there silently, staring down at the blackened skeleton below her. He was writhing in pain on the ground, bits of charred bone being rubbed off as he moved around. The parts of his body that were not blackened were raw, bleeding out some sort of watery magic. They looked sticky. The only thing that remained of his clothing was his leather collar.

"Get out of my sight. Both of you. Sans, a punishment will be worked out for you as well. You do own him, so you must take some fault."

Sans growled out a "Yes, my Queen." 

He grabbed Papyrus's chain and yanked it. Papyrus did not have the strength to follow, and was dragged after him. Sans allowed this, since Papyrus wasn't heavy. As he was dragged across the floor, bits of blackened bone rubbed off him. When they reached hotland, the stones felt like hot coals against Papyrus's body. He was overheated and in pain, and just wanted to lose consciousness. After a ferry ride that managed to spash some water onto Papyrus's body, they were in Snowdin. As soon as he felt the cool of the snow, he sank into it gratefully. Sans stopped at this point. 

"You will crawl. I will not drag you any further."

Papyrus didn't respond at first, but then he pushed himself onto his hands and knees, trembling from the exertion. All the way to their house he crawled, the cool air giving him such relief from the continuous burning. They stopped outside the back room of the house and Sans unlocked it. Papyrus was kicked inside, and remained motionless on the floor where he'd landed. 

"You heard the queen's plan for you. Anything to say, Mutt?"

"...i-i'm sorry..."

"I don't give a shit if you're sorry. It won't save you from hell."

Papyrus already knew that. He was soon left on the floor of the room. He felt like crying, but he didn't have the energy. He laid there motionless for the first few minutes and then, slowly and shakily, he brought a charred hand to his chest and summoned his soul into it. The extent of the damage to it was no surprise. It looked exactly how he felt. Bits and pieces were chipped off, and there was a crack down the middle. It was smaller than it had been before, and the places where its light glowed through its burnt surface were dimmed substantially. It trembled in his hold. Sickened by it, by himself, he let it disappear back into his chest. He should be dead. With his measly single hit point, he shouldn't have survived this long.

The only reason he'd lived was because the people in his life wanted to see him in pain. Not to kill him. They'd avoided killing him so that he could suffer more.

The only purpose for his life was to suffer, and to be in pain. He'd known that for a while, but now, in the dark silence of the back room, it was all he could think about. 

After a while, for some reason, the need to cry was gone. He didn't feel much. He'd never thought it'd be such a relief not to feel. He didn't really care anymore. All he had to do was let Sans do his thing for as long as it took, and then it would all be gone. All he had to do was take pain. He was almost done... almost-

His thoughts were cut off as Sans slammed the door open and stomped in, flicking the lights on and illuminating the room. Papyrus closed his eyes against the bright light and went as limp as he could. He was grabbed and roughly yanked up to a kneeling position. His wrists were cuffed and he was hung against the wall with them above his head. His naked, blackened body trembled in something akin to fear, but in his mind he couldn't bring himself to care. This was just a last bump in his life before he could finally rest. He didn't feel the terror his body was displaying. 

There was a work bench nearby where he hung, with all sorts of metal instruments on it. Papyrus didn't know specifically what they were for but he'd heard screams from this room on the occasion that Sans had to make someone talk. He didn't dwell much on that, just stared blankly at each tool, since there wasn't much else to look at. He didn't really notice the movement in front of him, but was soon aware of pain. It kept up for a long time. He knew he was reacting to it, but the weak cries he was making were dull and fuzzy in this strange state he was in. Almost as if they were someone else's noises of pain, and not his. 

This continued for a long time before Sans left, flicking off the light and leaving Papyrus wounded, hanging in the darkness. He slipped in and out of consciousness, not really aware of the passage of time. This continued for what he vaguely guessed was several days. Sans would come, there would be pain for a long time, and then he would leave. As each day passed he felt a more insistent pain in his stomach area. He knew he was hungry. He knew he'd get no food.  
Days blurred past and the pain kept getting sharper, eventually feeling like a stabbing in his gut. He couldn't focus on anything else, but he didn't really care. He knew that death would not be long, now. His wait was almost over. He couldn't move anymore, and his cries were fewer and farther between. When he did cry out it was a dry, weak, and choppy sound that didn't last long. A few more days passed. He could feel it approaching, now. It wouldn't be long. He wished it would speed up. It couldn't be more than a day away. He couldn't move anymore. Not that he wanted to. 

He was fine with it. His eyes were closed. They had been for a long time and it slowly occured to him that he couldn't open them. That was fine. 

\- - -

Sans was fed up with having to go to Papyrus every day. His workload hadn't changed, but now he had to think about setting time aside to torture that dumbass and also get his work done. He swore that everything Papyrus did was to hold him back. The sessions in the back room were no fun anymore. The idiot had stopped reacting. All that was really left to do was wait for him to die. 

As he ate his breakfast one morning, he decided not to go in to him. It was just boring now. He headed out to a morning patrol instead. 

Half-way through it, however, he felt a twinge in his soul. It was something frantic and pounding. He'd noticed it in the days before, before but had always been able to ignore it. Now, however, it was more intense. He gripped his chest as the feeling grew. It took a few minutes for him to realize what it was, but as soon as he did it jolted him into action. He went sprinting back towards town, gulping and feeling a tightness in his throat. 

"O-oh, fuck, shit... what have I d-done, what have I done... P-please don't be dead..." What had he done? 

He burst into the back room, the light from outside enough for him to see that it was empty. There was a small pile of dust on the ground below the shackles, and on top of that lay the collar. Sans stumbled closer to the pile, feeling tears gather in his eyes. He dropped to his knees next to it. It was so small... as tall as Papyrus had been, he hadn't had much to him. 

He picked up the collar and stared at it, before thrusting it away from himself in disgust. It went skittering into the darkness. Sans fell against the wall, something like a sob ripping out from his throat. He gritted his teeth, but no more than five seconds later he was covering his face, trembling intensely. He felt his tears gathering and wetting his hands and cheeks. His whole body shook as he wept, not really caring that he was crying loudly with the door left open. 

If someone would come and kill him, then let them. Papyrus was dead and he'd been the one to do it. 

"I-i'm so sorry...."

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> Oh no :^(  
> Please comment I am hungry for feedback of any kind. Also tell me if something went horribly wrong

**Author's Note:**

> So, uh...  
> Please comment and tell me what you thought! I love getting feedback! Confused at all? Comment!  
> Just comment please I need people to acknowledge me or I'll probably cry-  
> Anyways, until next time~!  
> :^)


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